Rodney-Wallace

For several weeks, every Portland Timbers fan has been following every superstition in the book so as to not rock the proverbial boat because whatever it is, it's working. This hasn't gone unnoticed and so every fan has been looking for their lucky Timbers gear, following certain patterns, and doing what they can to not disrupt the lucky cycle....

I have been watching soccer matches for most of my life, dating back to highlights from the old "Soccer Made in Germany" that played on Sunday mornings on KAID Channel 4 back in Boise, Idaho where I grew up. I've followed the Timbers since 2001 and joined the Timbers Army in 2004, and have also watched hundreds of hours...

After suffering a humiliating loss to the New York Red Bulls in their last match, Timbers Coach Caleb Porter promised changes. Making three lineup changes for a road match in Columbus, the Timbers used a swarming attack, timely defense and a Fanendo Adi brace to secure a hearty 2 to 1 win.

Before this weekend's match with the Houston Dynamo, we spend some time looking back at this week's historic and contentious battle in Tukwila between two Cascadian rivals. While the Timbers have shown remarkable composure during their recent winning streak, they'll be tested more with five matches in the two weeks - including three road trips for various competitions.

With both the Portland Timbers and Colorado Rapids playing midweek matches before their fixture, you could expect some sluggish efforts. While it started out slow, the Timbers got going first with a first half goal from Gaston Fernandez in the 38th minute. While Colorado nearly stole points with a Sam Cronin goal just before stoppage, Jack Jewsbury rescued the Timbers with a goal late in stoppage to give the Timbers a 2 to 1 win in dramatic fashion.

In part 8 of our 2015 season preview, we take a look at the midfielders that will wear the Timbers crest this season. While there are some early season injury issues - three players are either out or rehabbing for a return - and two are already dealing with various knocks. That being said, if this group can get healthy, it will help push Portland that much closer to the postseason.

The Portland Timbers returned back to Providence Park for their annual pre-season tournament - now called the Simple Tournament - for the first of three exhibitions matches. Facing their Cascadia rivals from Canada, the Timbers couldn't overcome a goal from former Timbers defender Pa Modou Kah against his old side for his new club as the Whitecaps took the match 1 to 0.

The Portland Timbers were hoping to make a statement while putting pressure on other teams in the Western Conference playoff chase, and they got the chance versus San Jose, a club they had defeated back on October 4 on the road. With Rodney Wallace scoring his third goal against the Earthquakes of 2014 and Diego Valeri tallying a second half brace, the Timbers secured a 3 to 0 victory to jump into fifth place in the West for now.

With an unfortunate incident in gardening keeping me away from the Blog for a few days, I'm playing catchup before the October 8 battle between Portland and San Jose. Four days earlier, the team earned a huge win in Santa Clara over the Earthquakes behind a brace from Rodney Wallace, but the return trip to Portland could be tough for San Jose as they are missing several key players.